miR‐126‐5p expression in the plasma of patients with sepsis‐induced acute lung injury and its correlation with inflammation and immune function

OBJECTIVE: This work was implemented to elucidate the miR‐126‐5p expression in the plasma of patients with sepsis‐induced acute lung injury (ALI) and its correlation with inflammation and immune function. METHODS: The peripheral blood of patients with sepsis‐induced ALI was obtained, and the levels of inflammatory factors (interleukin‐6 [IL‐6], C‐reactive protein [CRP], and procalcitonin [PCT]) were determined. Meanwhile, T lymphocyte subsets (CD3+, CD4+, and CD8+), and immunoglobulins (IgA, IgM, and IgG) were tested. miR‐126‐5p and TRAF6 mRNA expression in plasma was assessed. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was performed to assess the diagnostic accuracy of miR‐126‐5p in sepsis without ALI and sepsis with ALI. Correlation between miR‐126‐5p expression and clinical indicators was analyzed. The targets of miR‐126‐5p were predicted using the bioinformatics method, and the direct targets were verified through investigations. RESULTS: miR‐126‐5p expression in plasma of patients with sepsis‐induced ALI was reduced than that of patients with sepsis without ALI. miR‐126‐5p expression was negatively correlated with IL‐6, CRP, and PCT but positively correlated with IgA, IgM, and IgG as well as CD3+, CD4+, and CD8+ in patients with sepsis‐induced ALI. ROC curve suggested that miR‐126‐5p (AUC: 0.777; 95%CI: 0.689–0.866) could distinguish patients with sepsis with ALI from patients with sepsis without ALI. TRAF6 expression in patients with sepsis‐induced ALI was higher than that in patients with sepsis without ALI. TRAF6 was a target gene of miR‐126‐5p, CONCLUSION: This research highlights that miR‐126‐5p is reduced in the plasma of patients with sepsis‐induced ALI, and miR‐126‐5p relates to systemic inflammation and immune function indicators.